


Murphy's Law of Love

by artcorewh0re



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Accidental Bonding, Alternate Universe - College/University, Baristas, Child Neglect, Daddy Issues, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Falling In Love, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Healing, Jealousy, Love, Murphy's Law, Personal Growth, Understanding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-10-14
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:54:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,378
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25735360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/artcorewh0re/pseuds/artcorewh0re
Summary: Murphy's Law. A rule that states "if something can go wrong, it will." An addition to this law reads, "and usually at the worst times."Lucy Heartfilia, a creative writing major at the prestigious Fairy Tail University, is all to familiar with the concept of Murphy's Law. It's practically the entire basis of her life! No matter how many times she she crosses her fingers and hopes for all to go well, nothing turns out the way she wants it to. Especially when it comes to relationships.So of course, when she finally lands a job, she spills hot coffee all over Natsu Dragneel, an accounting major. Now neck deep in debt, Natsu poses Lucy a deal that she can't refuse."You can pay your debt by being my friend. No money needed,"Lucy tries her best to play nice and be a good friend, but can't help but push Natsu away when all he wants is to get closer to her. Will she finally put down her walls and let him in, or will the two spend a year distanced and bickering?Lets hope Murphy doesn't mess this one up.
Relationships: Bickslow/Lisanna Strauss, Evergreen/Elfman Strauss (mentioned), Gray Fullbuster/Juvia Lockser, Jellal Fernandes/Erza Scarlet, Laxus Dreyar/Mirajane Strauss (mentioned), Levy McGarden/Gajeel Redfox, Lucy Heartfilia & Levy McGarden, Lucy Heartfilia & Mirajane Strauss, Natsu Dragneel & Gray Fullbuster & Lucy Heartfilia & Erza Scarlet, Natsu Dragneel & Lisanna Strauss, Natsu Dragneel/Lucy Heartfilia
Comments: 1
Kudos: 33





	1. In which Lucy gets a job.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!

"Crap! I'm gonna be late!"

Pale legs move one in front of the other without a second of delay. Clutching her purse as she sprints across the sidewalk, blonde hair whisking around her face in the wind. She really should have tied that back, but there was no time to stop and do it now! Her brown eyes were large as she tried her best to pay attention to her surroundings through the golden locks of her hair and fatigue. 

To put it simply, she was exhausted. She had to sprint from her dorm to a job interview that she'd miss if she didn't get there in the next three minutes.

As if on cue, the ground was no longer beneath her feet.

She groaned as she slammed to the ground, forcing herself up as she rubbed her now sore shoulder. That was definitely going to bruise. She continued her sprints, ignoring the mixtures of glances that she'd gotten from pedestrians. Lucy sighed to herself; today really wasn't her day. No day ever was, honestly. Would she even be considered looking like this?

Her hair looked like she hadn't brushed it, her frilly pink shirt now had stains from her fall along with her jeans, and there was sweat starting to bead on her skin. She cursed herself and the universe,  _ why _ did she have to trip? Part of her wanted to cry. With a glance to her watch, she cried out and pushed herself to go faster. She had one more minute to get there! She pleaded that she'd at least be there on time, almost collapsing as she pushed through the doors of her hopefully soon-to-be job at Fairy Cafe.

"Oh, hello!" Pink lips curled into a gentle smile, blue eyes shimmering. Her white hair flowed elegantly, bangs in a ponytail. She waved a pale hand, giggling. Her nametag read:  **MIRAJANE** . "You can go ahead and sit wherever you want. I'll be with you in a moment!"

Looking around, our unlucky blonde takes in her surroundings, brushing her hair out of her face. She could feel herself flush. The cafe was rather small with a homey feel to it, booths along the walls and near the counter. Of course, there was an assortment of snacks and pastries displayed along with a large menu hung on the wall that read everything that was on the menu.

"I'm here for an interview." Sheepishly looking at her shoes, she smiled politely.

"You must be Lucy!" Mirajane exclaimed. "Have some water, you might as well relax."

"Thanks," Lucy accepted the freezing glass of water, quickly downing it. "I bet I look terrible, don't I?"

Mirajane sat at a booth with Lucy. "Stop it, you don't look that bad. There's nothing a little ponytail can't fix," Taking a hair tie off of her wrist, Mira offered it to Lucy. 

Lucy put it on, humming another thank you.

"See? You look great." Mirajane chirped. "Did you run here?"

"Yeah, my dorm's not too far." Lucy shrugged.

"Dorm? You go to FTU?" When Lucy nodded, Mirajane seemed to glow brighter. "Really? I was a student there once upon a time!"

The cafe was inside of the large campus, a hotspot for students to come study and socialize after-school. 

"Really? What's your major?" Clearly interested, Mirajane leaned closer to Lucy.

"Creative Writing." Lucy chuckled. "What was yours?"

"Oh, I took Hotel Management." Mirajane answered with a bright smile. "I was originally aiming to run a bar or a nice hotel, but honestly, the cafe scene isn't too bad for me. Gramps handed this over to me when the previous owner retired,"

"Gramps?" Lucy tilted her head a bit.

"You know, Headmaster Makarov!" Mirajane put up her index finger. "Short... mustache..."

"Ah, the headmaster." Lucy felt stupid now, why didn't she know that?

"So, Lucy, do you have any work experience?" Mira seemed to be going through a checklist in her head. 

"Sorry, no..." Lucy glanced at the table. This would be going downhill fast.

"Okay," Mira nodded to herself. "Why do you want to work for us?"

"I think cafes are super nice. They're always there when you need them!" Said Lucy, throwing in a charming smile. "Interacting with people isn't a problem either, so--"

"Be honest with me, Lucy. Why do you  _ really _ want this? That's one of our main policies here, honesty." Kind look began to fade and was instead replaced with intensity for a moment.

Lucy sighed. "My financial situation isn't the best right now, I need a job or I won't be able to survive."

"Oh, my. Have you paid your tuition?" Look of concern washing over Mira's features, she pouted.

"Yes." Her father paid it for her, unbeknownst to him, Lucy would be using this to distance herself from him entirely. That was the final thing that she wanted that no-good man to do for her. Being neglected from a young age after the death of her mother, Lucy feels as if her father never truly "loved" her. Lucy herself doesn't understand love.

"Don't look so grim." Smirking, Mirajane rested a hand on Lucy's shoulder. "Do you know why?"

"Why?" Hopeful look in her eyes, Lucy looked up.

"Because you're hired! Congrats!" Pulling her up from the table, Mira practically dragged Lucy to the counter. "Are you okay with being a standard barista?" 

"O-Of course! Thank you so much, Miss Mirajane!" Lucy exclaimed happily.

"Please, call me Mira. You're part of the Fairy family now." Mira smiled. "I bet you didn't have breakfast. As part of your orientation, you can pick anything off of the menu to have for breakfast. How does that sound?" 

Words couldn't describe how happy Lucy was as she and Mira went over her training schedule. She'd come by every day after classes for a week before she'd make a schedule that best suited her.

Maybe today wouldn't be so bad.


	2. In which Lucy makes a life-changing mistake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Has anyone watched Seven Deadly Sins season 4 (Imperial Wrath of the Gods) yet? I binged it all yesterday (8/6/20) and GOD it was so good!! 10/10, if you haven't seen it, I think you should watch it (if you have a Netflix account, but I'm pretty sure you can find it on YouTube too)
> 
> Anyways, please enjoy the chapter! Kudos, hits, and comments are greatly appreciated!

Just kidding. 

Lucy silently walked through the hallways of the academic building of FTU, sighing as she looked at her feet and avoided the curious glances from her peers. So far, today everyone was staring at her because of how her outfit looked, she was late to one of her classes, and she’d dropped her textbook in front of the entire lecture. Absolutely wonderful.

However, Lucy wasn’t going to let any of that ruin her spirit. After all, she’d just landed a job for the first time in, well, ever! She wanted to dance and laugh and do all sorts of merry things, but settled on walking to her next class. She couldn’t be late and didn’t want to make a fool out of herself. 

“Lu!” Ocean hair bouncing as the pale petite, pale woman approached Lucy with numerous books in hand. Her hazel eyes were large and told of many stories. “How’d it go?”

“Guess what?” Lucy grinned at her best friend. They’d been friends for all three years that they’d been attending Fairy Tail University, meeting at the icebreaker held for freshmen. They immediately bonded over their love for literature. Going three years strong, Lucy hoped they’d be friends forever. “I got the job, Levy!”

“Oh my gosh!” Levy exclaimed happily. “I’m so happy for you, I knew you could do it! You know, you always get yourself all caught up with that silly Murphy’s Law, I think all you need to do is manifest--”

“Oh lord, not manifesting again. Do you even know how to do it?” Lucy rolled her eyes playfully.

“No, I’m not really on Twitter like that. But you are, so it’s worth a shot.” Chuckling to herself, Levy shot Lucy a warm smile. “You’re luckier than you think.”

She’d spoken too soon. Before Lucy knew it, she tripped over nothing, dropping all of her things as she instinctively reached for something to grab on to, shutting her eyes tightly. Her efforts proved to be useful as an abnormally warm hand grasped onto hers. The hallway went completely silent, you could’ve heard a pin drop.

Lucy slowly peeked open her eyes, cursing inwardly.

There stood Natsu Dragneel and a few of his friends, most of which were snickering. Natsu grinned widely, a signature of his, onyx eyes crinkled at the edges as he did so. His salmon hair was ruffled as always, scarf worn around his neck. He never took it off. Almost all of the girls who attend FTU want to date him to have a taste of his “searing hot passion”. Whatever that meant. “Hello? You in there?”

Lucy squeaked as she quickly pulled her hand back, falling on her butt. Natsu chuckled at this.

“Damn, I caught you and you still ended up falling.” Natsu snickered, earning a glare from Lucy.

“Shut up,” Lucy groaned, rolling her eyes as he offered his hand once more. She didn’t take it and instead gathered her things. She seemed to be the only person here who wasn’t under his influence at all. People treat him like a god and he acts as such, Lucy hates it.

Rising to her feet, Lucy sighed.

“Do I not get a thank you? I mean, I did make your fall a little more bearable.” Positioning his hand by his ear, Natsu leaned closer to Lucy.

“Yeah, yeah. Thanks.” Lucy grumbled.

“Huh? I didn’t hear you, gosh, I should clean my ears out. What’d you say?” Squinting overdramatically, Natsu hummed.

Lucy forced a smile. “Right, thank you so much, Natsu!”

“As you should.” Natsu laughed and went back to join his friends. “Be more careful next time, alright?”

“Mhmm.” Lucy snapped, Levy joining her side once more.

“Lu, you talked to Natsu for like a whole minute!” Levy giggled. 

“Don’t tell me you’re in love with him too.” Lucy gagged.

“Of course not, my heart belongs to another.” Levy scoffed and turned away.

“Right, you’re head over heels musician you met at the park. What’s his name again..? G… Guh…” Pretending not to know, Lucy laughed as Levy swatted at her arm gently.

“Gajeel!” Levy whined. “C’mon, Lu!”

“I know, I’m just joking!” Lucy smiled. “Well, I’m at my class, so… see you.”

Lucy entered her social sciences class, going and sitting down. There, a tall woman with brown hair groggily approached her.

“Yo.” Lucy almost immediately recognized her as Cana, the school drunk. She’s always drinking “water” during class. Her breath reeked of vodka. “You’re Lucy, right?”

“Yeah.” Lucy nodded.

“This is your last class, yeah?” Sitting down beside her, Cana took a swig of the foreign substance inside of her water bottle. 

“Um, yeah. My next one’s cancelled. Why?” Lucy’s eyebrows furrowed.

“I’m training you. At the cafe.” Cana shrugged without a care in the world. “So let’s walk there together, ‘kay?”

“Sure.”

“You’re looking at my drink real hard.” Cana slurred and offered Lucy the bottle. “Want some?”

“No thanks.” Lucy grimaced. 

The class ended as soon as it’d started, Lucy and Cana walking to the cafe together. 

“Welcome back, you guys! Cana, can you wait tables while I go and fit Lucy for a uniform?” Mira chirped.

“Sure, whatever.” Cana shrugged and went to clock in. “S’Erza here yet?”

“No, she’s not coming in today.” Mira shook her head as she led Lucy to the back.

“Thank God.” Cana whistled.

As soon as Lucy was fitted for her uniform, she and Cana went to start her training. She was taught how to clock in, use the espresso machines, hold trays, basically everything a barista would need to know. Lucy smiled as she got the hang of it.

“Do you think you can handle an order?” Mira asked. “It’s totally fine if--”

“No, I can handle it.” Lucy nodded to herself, momentarily crossing her fingers and toes and praying for luck.

“Great.” Mira pointed to a table. “Why don’t you go over there and get started with Natsu? He’s a regular.”

Lucy’s eyebrow quirked as she sighed loudly. “Sure.”

She walked over to Natsu’s table, handed him a menu, and plastered a fake smile onto her face. “Hi, welcome to--”

“Woah, Luce, you work here!?” Natsu gasped.

“I’m a new employee, yeah.” Lucy nodded. “So what can I get you?”

“Um… hm….” Natsu rubbed his chin as he looked over the exact same thing over and over again. Lucy quickly looked back at Mira, who had a strange look in her eye as she hurriedly scribbled something down in a pink notepad with stickers all over it. Cana looked to be laughing. 

“I’ll come back when you’re--” Lucy said with a tight-lipped smile.

“No, no. Okay, so I want an americano and a spinach quiche.” Natsu waved her off, having known what he wanted from the very beginning. Lucy nodded.

“Hey, Luce. Where’s your notepad? Aren’t baristas supposed to have one?” Natsu frowned.

“I haven’t bought one yet.” Lucy shrugged. “You’re my first customer, after all.”

“No way! I just took Luce’s barista virginity!” Natsu gave himself a fist bump, much to Lucy’s disgust.

“What the hell did you just say..?” Ready to stab him, Lucy clenched her fists.

“Don’t get so mad, it was a joke.” Natsu pouted.

“I’m going to go put in your order.” Lucy glowered, telling Mira and Cana what he’d ordered. They went to get that ready. Lucy watched as Mira slipped the notepad into her pocket with a devilish smirk. She definitely had to ask her about that later.

“Here’s his coffee. Careful, it’s hot.” Cana handed Lucy Natsu’s drink. Lucy muttered a thank you and went to bring it to him.

Left, right, left, right. Lucy walked over to his table quickly. The sooner she got there, the sooner she could leave. Simple as that. She had to go back for his quiche of course, but it was a start. However, for some odd reason, Lucy seemed to be unable to walk properly today. She was just about a half step away before she tripped on her shoelace and her body slammed roughly to the floor. Gasps erupted around the room.

“God damnit, Luce. How many times do you trip in a day?” Natsu seethed.

With the sudden urge to cry, Lucy stood up slowly before her body went rigid.

_The coffee._

Eyes darting around as she tried to find the cup, Lucy’s heart plummeted.

“Looking for this?” Said Natsu, holding up the small, now empty white cup. Lucy covered her mouth, cursing softly.

_Natsu was soaked in coffee._


	3. In which Lucy makes a new “friend”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and so it begins!!

“Oh my god, I am so sorry!” Lucy scrambled to go grab a handful of napkins to give to him. Cana seemed to be holding back fits of laughter, gripping the counter as she pursed her lips. Mira giggled and approached the scene, wiping down the table with a small sigh.

“I apologize. Here’s a voucher for free coffee,” She handed him the slip of pink paper and walked back behind the counter, scribbling something else down into her strange notebook.

“Natsu, I..” Lucy cried, wincing as he pointed for her to sit. “Thanks for the offer, but I--“

“Lucy, don’t be so hard on yourself.” Cana snickered, exchanging looks with Mira. “Mira’n I will take the orders for now. Take a load off,”

“B-But…” When Mira’s eyes shone with untold danger, Lucy was quick to sit down next to Natsu, being sure to keep her distance.

“Do you know how much this outfit cost me?” Natsu said, voice eerily calm. 

Lucy prepared herself for the worst, hands sitting shamefully in her lap. “No, how much?”

“$6,085.” Natsu squinted, leaning forward a bit.

“H-Huh!?” Lucy honestly couldn’t even be surprised. Coming from an incredibly wealthy family herself, she knew the insane amounts of money that rich people could spend on clothing.

“Should I repeat it?” Natsu tilted his head. “$6,085.”

Lucy looked down at the table.

“So, how do you intend to pay me back?” Natsu sighed, running a hand through his hair.

“I don’t...” Lucy said softly, voice trailing off. This was so embarrassing.

With that being said, Natsu sat with a weird look on his face. Lucy couldn’t quite read what it was. “Well then. What should we do? There’s numerous solutions to this problem...” He started mumbling to himself.

“Look, it was an accident, I swear! Can’t we just forget about this?” Lucy tried her best to sound as kind as possible. 

“I could, but…” Natsu wore a strange, almost terrifying look in his eyes. “Where’s the fun in that?”   
_ Fun? This is fun to you?  _ Lucy wanted to tear her hair out. “You only say that because you’re rich.”

“And so are you.” Natsu raised an eyebrow. “Why don’t you go ahead and ask daddy to pay it off for you?”

Lucy grit her teeth, he doesn’t know the half of it. “That’s not necessary. What are your terms?”

“Hm. You have to pay off $500 a month. You’ll be done in a year, you’re lucky I cut $85 from the total. Just a little friendly discount,” Natsu took out a notepad from his pocket and started scribbling numbers down. Why does everyone carry around notepads?

“ _ A month!? _ ” Lucy gawked. “L-Look, I don’t have that kind of money--”

“I know, which is why I’ve come up with a payment-free, interest-free solution.” Natsu hummed. Lucy blinked a few times, mind trying to concoct all of the possible “payments” that he would be thinking of. So far, things weren’t looking too good… “W-What do you mean?”

“I’m so glad you asked!” Natsu grinned. He waved his free coffee voucher around. “Mira, I’d like to use this voucher now!” 

“Sure thing,” She went to make the cup of coffee.

The door swung open once more, the tallest person Lucy has ever seen rushing inside with grocery bags. His eyes were black, skin tanned with a scar running over one of his eyes. His hair was white and spiked up. “Sis, I’m so sorry, there was traffic and--”

“Elfman-nii, shut up!” Mira snapped, whispering as she yanked him closer and leaned into his ear. “You’re ruining their moment, this is a breakthrough. I don’t care that you’re late, we were fine.” Her grip on his shirt tightened. “ _ Don’t interrupt them again _ .”

“R-Right.” What was she going on about? Elfman sometimes could barely understand his (sometimes terrifying) sister's strange obsession for “shipping”. She used all of these weird terms like “canon” and “sailing” and--

“You can pay your debt by being my friend. No money needed,” Natsu shrugged.

Lucy visibly relaxed, a relieved sigh slipping from her lips. She sat like that for a moment before a look of utter confusion plastered itself across her face. “Wait, what?”   
“I mean, obviously you don’t have the money to pay me back.” Natsu’s face darkened as he stared into her eyes intensely. “Unless you do, then I’d gladly accept it in cash right now.”   
“I don’t.” Lucy muttered sheepishly.

“Exactly!” Natsu chirped. Lucy sweat, how could someone go from being so intense to being so friendly in a split second? “And I want to be your friend anyway, so it’s a win-win, right?”   
“Right…” With a tight-lipped smile, Lucy held back a sigh. “If you don’t mind me asking, why?”

“Because you intrigue me.” Natsu smirked. “Pretty much everyone else fawns over me, I’m pretty sure I’m like the number one bachelor or something like that. But you don’t. So I wanna be your friend because you seem cool, s’all. Besides, it’ll be easy. You just have to be nice and hang out with me for a year.”

Natsu laughed loudly as Lucy fell silent. “What’s with that look?”

“You are so weird,” Lucy rubbed her temples, groaning.

“And so are you, Miss-I’m-Going-To-Trip-At-Every-Possible-Moment.” Natsu quipped back, snickering as Lucy clicked her tongue, going rigid. 

“Look, you don’t get it. I’ve got this thing--“ Lucy tried to explain, wanting to hit Natsu when he cut her off for the millionth time today.

“It’s fine, I don’t really care!” Natsu grinned. “I hang out with a ton of weird people, you’ll see! We’ll all be weird together!”

Lucy could somewhat understand how people fell for him so easily. With that childlike grin, how could you not feel at ease-- Not in a crush way, that is! He just has nice vibes, but she won’t fall victim to his games! “Well, I’ll get back to work now, so…”

“Oh, you don’t have to worry about that! Your training’s over for today,” Mira waved her off, giggling deviously. Lucy pleaded with her with her eyes, Mira ignoring it and sending her a blatantly obvious wink. 

“Mira’s right. We haven’t even discussed our contract yet.” Natsu said, voice singsong.

“C-Contract?” Lucy squeaked.

Natsu looked at her as if that were the most obvious thing in the world. “Of course we need a contract. Here, get out your phone.”

“Why?” Lucy hesitantly took out her phone, handing it to him with caution.

“Because we’re friends now and need to stay in touch, dummy!” Natsu clicked his tongue, shaking his head. “And here I thought you were supposed to be smart. Though I guess you  _ are  _ lacking in the friendship department. I only see you talking to that short girl, what’s her name again?”

“I didn’t come here to be insulted by you.” Lucy sneered.

“Right, you came here to dump piping hot coffee on me.” Natsu looked up at her with a smile and handed her phone back gently.

_ Why does he smile so much?  _ Lucy rolled her eyes and accepted it, looking at his contact before slipping her phone back into her pocket. She could’ve sworn she heard a very Mira-like squeal. “No, I came here to work.”

“I know, it was just a joke.” Natsu sighed, pulling Lucy to him as he draped his arm around her shoulder.. “Jeez, loosen up. I’m so glad you spilled coffee all over me, you’ve got so much to learn about people.”

“Don’t touch me.” Lucy snapped, quickly moving him away. 

“You’re so short tempered, Luce.” Natsu said with half-lidded eyes, smiling warmly. Lucy held back a small whine, he was so intense and then decided to calm down  _ now _ ? He’s insane! He sat straighter, giggling. “See? I’m learning about you already!”

“Shut up,” Lucy glared.

Natsu sipped his coffee leisurely before looking at his phone. He cried loudly, scrambling up. “Luce, move! I have to get home and feed Happy before my next class!” He downed the rest of the coffee, an energetic shiver moving through him. “I’ll text you later! Bye, everyone!”

Lucy slammed her head on the table as soon as the door shut, groaning loudly. She grabbed his dishes and went to put them in the sink, freezing as she saw the super tall guy from earlier doing dishes.

“Hi.” She said awkwardly.

“Hello, I’m Elfman. You’re the new employee, right?” Elfman smiled.

“Yeah.” Lucy returned the kind gesture.

“Café’s sure are manly, aren’t they?” Elfman said, returning his gaze to the dishes at hand.

“Um… sure..?” Lucy tilted her head. What?

“I’ll let you get back to your work.” Elfman waved her off. He knew that look from anywhere. “Nice meeting you, kind stranger.” 

“It’s Lucy.” Lucy hummed and turned to leave.

“Elfman. Welcome to the team,” 

“Soooo….” Mira sang, innocently walking over to Lucy with her hands behind her back. 

“I’m so embarrassed.” Lucy groaned.

“One great, absolutely spectacular thing came out of the embarrassment though.” Mira smirked.

“Really? What good could  _ possibly  _ come with that?” Lucy rolled her eyes.

“A new, fiery love.” Mira winked, giggling as Lucy screeched.

“WHAT!?” When customers glanced at her, Lucy sheepishly waved. “Sorry…” She turned back to Mira, quieting down. “What do you mean  _ love _ ? Natsu and I will happen when cats fly.”

”Sure,” Mira quickly took out her notepad and started writing.

“What are you doing?” Lucy squinted.

“Making a ship name for you guys. Cana, I’m thinking NaLu.” Mira chirped. “It has a nice ring, doesn’t it?” 

“It totally does,” Cana laughed as Lucy’s eye twitched.

“No! It doesn’t!” Lucy reached to snag the notepad.

Mira dodged each and every one of her attempts with ease. “Yes it does! Denial is the first stage of a beautiful romance!”

Anyone could see the hearts in her eyes.

“But damn, Lucy, you’re going after a Dragneel?” Cana whistled as Mira tossed the notebook to her. “Don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t that. Shit, good luck, I guess.”

“I don’t like Natsu! In fact, I hate his guts!” Lucy whined, balling up her fists. “He’s so annoying!”

“Uh-huh.” Cana and Mira deadpanned.

“I--“ 

“Hi, welcome to Fairy Cafe! We’ll be with you shortly!” Mira called. Lucy went to take the order, slightly ticked off. Her with Natsu? Ha!

. . .

“Great work today.” Mira hummed. “I believe you earned this.” She handed Lucy her first paycheck. “You’ve completed training!”

“Really? That was fast.” Lucy’s eyebrows raised.

“In honor of you joining our family, we’re throwing you a party on Friday! Be sure not to miss it!” Mira pointed as she walked Lucy out. “All employees will be there!”

“Okay.” Normally, Lucy studies on weekends, but she had to make an exception. She couldn’t get on Mira’s bad side. Since today’s Wednesday, then…

“Great! See you tomorrow!” Mira waved and went back inside to close up shop.

Lucy walked back to her dorm, swinging open the door to hear four tiny paws slapping against the floor. A grin made its way to her face. “Plue!”

Lucy crouched down, extending her arms to welcome her white chihuahua. He shivered as she pet him, making her pout. “Aw, you must’ve been cold all day, huh? I’m sorry, let’s get you a sweater.”

She walked through the small dorm, grabbing a blue, tiny sweater that was perfect for Plue. She shook it to excite him a bit, going to slip it on him. His response to this was yet another shiver, Lucy giggling. “Well, it’s a start.”

Her dorm was small. There was carpet on every inch of the floor (except the bathroom and kitchen), queen sized bed pushed against the wall, a dresser with clothes, a closet filled with clothes, bathroom, kitchen, and a TV that sat on her desk in front of her bed. She really only used it on Saturday nights to watch one of her favorite soap operas, however it always cuts off at the good parts!

Her phone vibrated. She looked at it to see Natsu’s number. He was requesting to eat lunch with her tomorrow. Their lunch period was the same, so it should work. Lucy really needed to pay this off, so she sighed and sent a simple “sure”. 

After laying out her homework on her bed to see what she had to do, Lucy got right to work, in her moment. After about an hour, she got a call. “I swear, if it’s  _ him  _ again…” 

It was Levy. Lucy quickly answered.

“Lu!” Levy sobbed.

“Woah, woah. What’s wrong?” Lucy’s eyes widened. “Are you okay?”

“No! I’m not okay! Do I sound okay to you!?” Levy hiccuped.

“Calm down, what’s happening?” Lucy held back a giggle. She already knew where this was going.

“So I was reading Dragon Cry and…” Levy rambled, telling Lucy all about the twists and turns that took place in the book that she was currently reading. “...isn’t that so sad? Like I get it, but-- oh my god, don’t make me cry again!”

“Levy, you’ve got to lend me that book. It sounds amazing,” Lucy exclaimed. 

“Oh, it is!” Levy giggled before clearing her throat. “But you know… I’m still super sad. You know what would make me feel better?”

“What?” Lucy smirked, playing along.

“If you wanna maybe… slide me another draft of the book you’re writing, a ha ha?” Levy tried her best to sound smooth. “Please, Lu! The last chapter I read really left me hanging!”

“How could I possibly say no to my biggest fan?” Lucy joked. “Check your email later tonight.”

“Yes! Thank you so much, I love, love,  _ love  _ you!” Levy giggled, Lucy could practically hear her  _ I-just-got-something-new-to-read  _ dance. “So! Tell me about your first day of work.”

“Right.” Lucy could feel herself getting slightly ticked off again. “You are not going to believe this! It was all going perfect, then Natsu shows up! He was being super annoying as always and then Murphy decides--“ Lucy made her voice higher to imitate what she thinks this horrid law would sound like if it were a person. “-- _ oh wow, I’m gonna go mess something else up for wonderful Lucy _ so I tripped and spilled it all over him! So now I owe that idiot six thousand dollars--“

“Wait, did I hear that right? Six  _ thousand _ ?” Levy gawked.

“Yeah.” Lucy groaned.

“What’d you spill it on? His laptop?” Levy couldn’t white wrap her head around a sum that large. She, unlike Lucy (formerly) and Natsu, was not filthy rich. She could only dream. 

“His outfit.” Levy whined.

“His  _ clothes  _ cost-- well, I guess that makes sense. He is hella rich, after all.” Levy said, nodding to herself. “So what are you going to do?” She didn’t exactly know the details of Lucy’s situation, but knew that her friend was struggling financially.

“I have to be his friend for a year.” Lucy sighed. “By doing that I pay off $500 a month.”

“Oh, that’s not too hard!” Levy winked. “You know, I’d say Natsu wants to get close to you, don’t you think?”

“Don’t make me laugh,” Lucy snapped playfully. “We’re not going to get close.”

“Whatever you say.” Levy didn’t sound convinced at all. “Well, I’ll get going now. I was just calling to tell you about Dragon Cry and ask about work, so talk to you later!”

“Bye.” The line went dead.

Lucy sat in silence for a moment.

_ “I’d say Natsu wants to get close to you!” _

_ “Because you intrigue me.” _

She quickly shook her head. Why would anyone want to get closer to her if she clearly showed that she wasn’t interested? He only brought up the friendship payment because he felt bad, not because he was “intrigued”. What was there to be intrigued about?

Lucy looked at the clock, deciding to shower.

As she lathered herself in strawberry-scented soap, Lucy couldn’t help but wonder what it’d be like if she and Natsu actually did end up being friends. As warm water pelted down her curves, she dismissed the thought. That wouldn’t actually happen, they’re much too different! She got out of the shower, dried off, got in her pajamas and heated up some instant ramen.

When she finished that, she took Plue outside to use the bathroom, sighing as her phone vibrated again and again. She took it out when she got home, rolling her eyes as Natsu bombarded her with texts:

**hey**

**hey**

**heyyyyy**

**hettyyyy**

**haha i said hertyyy**

**HERTYYYY**

**H E T T Y Y HAHAJDHSMAKKA**

**luce!!!**

**luce get up It’s to eRly to be sleeping**

**early**

**well i guess it isn’t**

**but i know you’re up**

**because you’re a college student**

**so**

**wanna play imessage games**

**i like 8ball**

**we should play 8ball**

**what do you think**

For a future accountant, Natsu sure had terrible grammar. Lucy sighed and responded with:

**Sorry, I have homework. You should do yours too.**

Natsu resounded with a short  **:( k** and left her to do her work. Lucy powered down her phone, not wanting to be interrupted again. 

And so her friendship with Natsu began.


	4. In which Lucy makes a contract.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it’s been a while, huh? i’m sorry! schools been really crazy as of late and it’s really stressful. but! i love updating things so yeah! i will try to get things out faster! thank you for reading, you guys are the best!!

Lucy groaned as she felt a wet, gross tongue lapping itself across her face, followed by a few short barks. “Plue, stop it… Plue…”

Her bed was so warm and soft, it was such a great thing that school--

Lucy shot up, eyes wide. “School! Oh no, what time is it?” Looking over at her clock, she’d just realized how late she really was. Her first class was starting in five minutes! Lucy scrambled out of bed in hopes that she would suddenly gain super speed or some weird power like that, trying to get through her morning routine as fast as she possibly could. She didn’t even make food for herself as she dumped a heap of food into Plue’s bowl, saying a hurried goodbye as she raced to school. A very large part of her wanted to sit down on the side of the road and cry, but she knew that she didn’t have time for that! Maybe she could make it if she just pushed herself harder, right? Right!

... that’s apparently not how that works. Despite how fast she’d gotten ready (the water for her shower chose to heat up extra slow, she couldn’t find socks, and a barrage of other setbacks really added to her anger this morning), she still missed her first class. There were only three minutes left in her first period and she figured there was no point in going now. She’d only embarrass herself. 

She took out a hand mirror, sighing at her reflection. Hot, sweaty, tired… but imagine how late she would’ve been had it not been for Plue. She loved her dog. Lucy made a mental note to buy him treats whenever she got the chance. She glanced at her phone, rolling her eyes at the numerous texts that she’d gotten from Natsu  _ again _ .

**remember luce**

**were having lunch today**

**we’re**

**lets talk about the contract over good food yes**

**and**

**can we play 8ball today??? you said no yesterday so lets play today**

**i really like 8ball i swear its fun its my favorite**

Lucy wanted to laugh and tear her hair out at the same time. He’s so… still, she found herself sending a reply:

**No 8-Ball for us right now. We’re in school.**

**And where will we meet for lunch?**

Natsu was quick to respond:

**i will come pick you up from class**

**like the gentleman i am ;)**

**i know, i know, no need to clap for me**

**you have creative writing right**

Lucy sent a confirmation text and went to her next class, in which she thankfully wasn’t late for. Before she knew it, it was time for her favorite class, creative writing.

Lucy typed word after word, chewing the bottom of her lip as the word count racked up. The climax was high and Lucy didn’t want to stop writing in fear of losing the intensity that she currently felt.

“You can start packing up,” Her professor hummed, class was nearing its end. “Your homework for tonight is to complete your pieces. Prepare to present and workshop with the class. Great job today, everyone.”

Lucy sighed, trying to cover as much ground as she could as she could. However, luck (of course) was not on her side as the bell rung and her classmates began to filter out. Maybe just a few more minutes…

“Miss Heartfilia,” Her professor chuckled. “The class is over, you know. You can leave, you know.”

“Yeah, Luce! C’mon, I’m hungry!” Natsu popped his head into the classroom, waving energetically.

“Natsu…:” Lucy groaned, her professor wiggling her eyebrows.

“Who’s that? Your boyfriend? Lucy, I didn’t see you as the dating type!” Playfully jabbing at her, her professor’s voice was singsong.

“I am not the dating type. We are not dating. It’s very, very complicated,” Lucy groaned and walked out the door.

“It’s about time,” Natsu playfully pouted, crossing his arms. 

“I only waited like thirty seconds over the bell.” Lucy scoffed.

“Actually, it was five minutes. Now we’re late for lunch,” Natsu grinned. 

“Sorry,” Lucy said awkwardly. Now she felt bad.

“It’s cool! I bet you were really into it, huh?” Natsu rested his arms behind his head as they walked side by side down the hallway. Lucy ignored the bewildered stares that she got, nodding at Natsu. “I get how that feels! You really gotta feed into that passion, you know?”

Lucy smiled. “Yeah,”

“Don’t forget that feeling, okay? But anyway, about that 8-ball.” Natsu took out his phone and nudged Lucy. He laughed as she scowled and scooted away. “Aw, Luce, don’t be like that. It was a friendly nudge!”

“Yeah, yeah. But I don’t want to play.” Lucy shook her head. “By the way,how’d you know what class I was in?”

“I see you come out of there all the time. Plus I asked your short friend, Levy.” Natsu shrugged.

“That explains why she wasn’t waiting for me today,” Lucy noted to herself.

She and Natsu left the Fine Arts building and walked through the warm late summer air.

“It feels great out here, right?” Natsu sighed happily as the warm air kissed his skin. “Summer’s the best.”

“No way. Autumn is much better,” Lucy rolled her eyes playfully. 

“You’re a fall type of girl?” Natsu cringed. “Sheesh, you're dangerous.”

“Don’t hate. The air’s nice, the leaves are pretty, and you can’t go wrong with all of the holidays.” Lucy sucked her teeth. “Oh! You can’t forget the pumpkin spice, and all of those cute pumpkin patches and the flannel and all of that great stuff.”

“Halloween is fun!” Natsu chirped.

“Alright, we’re here!” Natsu exclaimed as they entered the common building, going to the lunchroom there. There were numerous options of food, drinks, and snacks, along with a school store. This is where some students hang out after school. “I’ll bring you to the table, and then we can get something to eat.”

“‘Kay,” Lucy hummed and followed Natsu.

The first person to notice her was a man with droopy black eyes who seemed to be excruciatingly hot. His hair is such a dark shade of blue, it’s often always seen as black. At the moment, he wasn’t wearing a shirt. Lucy could easily recognize him as Gray Fullbuster, tied with Natsu on that stupid heartthrob list.

Next to him was Juvia Lockser, captain and star of the swim team. Her blue hair was long, large black eyes slightly upturned. She smelled of chlorine. 

Then there was a girl who looked exactly like Mira, but different… “Ah! I know that look! I’m Lisanna, Mirajane’s younger sister. She works at the cafe!”

“Oh! That explains why you look so familiar.” Lucy sat down before standing back up awkwardly. “Um, is this seat taken?” Why was she so nervous?

“No,” Gray shrugged. “Who’re you? A friend of Natsu’s?”

“Yup!” Natsu grinned.

“You could say that,” Lucy sweat.

“Who would wanna be friends with you, Natsu? You’re annoying as hell.” Gray laughed. Lucy wanted to second that. “Just yesterday, she seemed pissed off with you. Are you paying her or something?”

Lucy and Natsu exchanged looks, trying to find the right words.

Gray’s eyes widened as he sat up. “No way. No fucking way. Spill what happened now,”

“Wait! We haven’t asked her name yet,” Juvia scolded him. “Though Juvia is also curious.”

“I’m Lucy Heartfilia.” Lucy stated, falling into silence.

“She spilled coffee on me--” Natsu started, but was interrupted by Gray.

“You definitely deserved it.” Gray smirked.

Natsu glared at him. “--and she’s indebted to me now because that was my favorite outfit that cost $6,000. But she’s not paying in cash! Lucy just has to be our friend until next year; cue the happy music!”

“That’s an awfully childish reason to put someone in debt if it was just an accident, but,” Lisanna chirped. “If it’s just for friendship, then I don’t have a problem with it at all!”

“Alright, Natsu the pimp.” Gray laughed.

“He is  _ not  _ my pimp.” Lucy snarled.

“Eeesh, I was just joking! Don’t stab me now.” Gray put his hands up.

“Haha, Gray’s going to get stabbed.” Natsu pointed, laughing loudly.

“Shut up, jackass. You ruined the joke.” Gray snapped playfully.

“At least I’m not ugly.” Natsu taunted.

“Hey, that hurt my feelings! Can you see the tears--”

“Shut up, Gray. You don’t have feelings.” Natsu scoffed, glowing a raspberry. The two started to argue loudly, Lucy sweating as Juvia giggled sweetly.

“They’re both dorks.” Juvia smiled.

“But we love them anyway.” Lisanna added.

“Yes, well Juvia loves Gray-sama the most, he’s just so wonderful and… Gray-sama, where’s your shirt?” Juvia questioned playfully.

“I don’t know or care.” Gray groaned. “Don’t even mention how hot it is out here, I feel like I’m gonna throw up. I’m gonna go get shaved ice.”

“Good riddance.” Natsu sighed.

“You wanna say that again?” Gray cracked his knuckles.

“I said goo--”

The two started to tumble across the floor, Lucy squeaking as she looked at Lisanna and Juvia. 

“Don’t worry, they do this all the time!” Lisanna waved her off. She scanned the room before smirking. “It’ll be broken up in just a minute.”

Lucy followed Lisannas gaze to see a woman with scarlet red hair approaching. The color of her long hair flowing behind her (it came at an angle) was all Lucy could see, for there was a large, five-tier cake blocking her view. Where did this mystery person get that from, this is college, not some high class patisserie. 

She put the cake down gently before rolling up her sleeves. “Boys,”

“Wh-- Oh! Erza!” Gray and Natsu froze, processing who was speaking to them before scrambling up to wrap their arms around each other with merry grins. “We’re the best of friends! Totally not fighting, nope not us! Our friendship is much to great, ha-ha-ha! He-he-he! Ho-ho-ho!”

Erza turned to her cake after nodding, somewhat satisfied. “You two have the nerve to fight in front of a guest, how… oh, I guess I never introduced myself to you, I’m Erza.”

“Lucy.” Lucy shivered, the auras that Erza was giving off sure were intense…

Natsu and Gray glared at one another before sitting down.

“So, the contract!” Natsu grinned.

“Contract?” Erza’s eyebrows furrowed, looking around the table. “Can someone fill me in?”

“Oh, sure. Lucy is in debt to Natsu by $6,000, so she’s being his friend to pay it off. If it’s for a year, then that’s… hm…” Juvia tried her best to add it.

Less than a second later, Natsu and Gray responded with “$500 a month.”

“Ha! I said it faster!” Natsu laughed.

Gray rolled his eyes. “Get your head out of your ass. You knew the numbers before I did,  _ you’re  _ the one who put her in debt in the first place.”

“Do you want me to talk with him?” Erza offered, forking cake into her mouth. Anyone could tell that she wasn’t going to chat nicely with Natsu.

“N-No.” Lucy wouldn’t wish that kind of pain on anyone, not even Natsu.

“So anyway!” Natsu clapped his hands. “Luce, I’m going to go get food, but when I come back we’ll discuss the contract.”

“We’ll discuss the contract headass.” Gray mocked Natsu. “You think you’re so smart.”

“I am. You wish you could be me,” Natsu rolled his eyes and left to get food. Gray excused himself shortly after to go get shaved ice, he couldn’t bear the heat anymore.

“Sooooo, Lucy!” Lisanna chirped. “Do you have any hobbies?”

“Um, I like writing.” Lucy fumbled with her hands.

“Juvia thinks that’s so cool!” Juvia exclaimed. “Juvia wishes she could write, then she’d be able to make her Gray-sama fall for her for sure!”

Erza and Lisanna sweat, Juvia really could be clueless at times. Anyone could tell that Gray had feelings for her, she just didn’t seem to be able to see it. Lucy smiled as the three eventually floated off into their own conversation. She didn’t mind, it was nice to listen in, and instead continued her writing.

“Can Juvia read it?” Lucy yelped, almost falling from her chair as Juvia peered intensely at the computer. “Oops, sorry.”

“Um, it’s not exactly done yet…?” Lucy mumbled, trying to ease her racing heart.

“That’s okay! Juvia would like to read it nonetheless!” Juvia clasped her hands together and leaned forward a bit.

With a tight-lipped smile, Lucy slid the computer to her. Lisanna and Erza looked at it too before three pairs of eyes were glued to her.

“Lucy, you’re amazing! Tap into that talent, wait, what do you want to be?” Erza yelled, slamming her fists on the table and earning the stares from numerous other students.

“I don’t know, an author? Or like, a journalist or something.” Lucy could feel her cheeks burning, staring into her lap.

“That was the best thing I’ve ever read! Just, wow!” Lisanna grinned. “Did you get a scholarship?”

“No.” Lucy mumbled sheepishly. “I paid in full.”

“But you couldn’t pay back the debt..? Student loans?” Lisanna tilted her head, edges of her lips moving downward.

Lucy’s eyebrow quirked. “Ah, it’s a little complicated.”

“How so?” Lisanna squinted. “Please don’t tell me you’re just trying to—“

“I’m back!” Natsu grinned and sat down with a personal pizza covered in toppings, a basket of wings and fries, a corn dog, some popcorn, and a large slushee. How was one person supposed to eat all of that? Lucy could practically feel the cramps as she stared at it. “What’s up? Want some?”

“No thanks.” Lucy looked back at her computer.

“So!” Natsu said, mouth full of greasy food. “The contract. I was thinking that we’ll make rules for our friendship.”

“Rules?” Lucy shrugged. “I can work with that.”

“Great.” Natsu took out a notepad and wrote his name at the top. “Sign your name next to mine.”

Lucy took the paper and signed her name. She found it nice how her handwriting was much neater than Natsu’s. 

“Great.” Natsu drummed the pencil on the table. “What should be rule number one?”

“I know!” Gray exclaimed. “You should do something like  _ no falling in love _ ! They always do that in the movies.”

“Gray’s into romcoms?” Erza teased, sending a wink to Juvia.

“Who isn’t?” Gray sneered. “I gotta take notes, man.”

“That’s dumb,” Natsu snapped. “Luce can fall for me if she wants to. There’s no way to control the way she feels.”

“Why do you keep calling me Luce?” Lucy grumbled.

“It’s a nickname, dummy! If you want, you can come up with one for me too!” Natsu gasped like a child. “I was thinking—“

“Nope. I’m good with Natsu.” Lucy hummed.

“Bummer.” Natsu sighed. “Anyway. Rule one should be… no prying into personal matters? Because every friendship has boundaries.”

“I can work with that.” Lucy nodded. “And rule two should be something like… um, consent? If one of us says no to something, then that’s it, it doesn’t matter what it is.”

“That should go without saying, but sure.” Natsu scribbled that down. “We should also try not to be too mean. I know you don’t like me very much, but let’s be nice, alright?”

“Right.” Lucy chuckled. 

“Oh! And if there’s a problem, like, if someone’s making you uncomfortable or something, we have to tell each other!” Natsu said as if he’d forgotten something very important. “Communication is key, so we have to… tell… each other… everything… OKAY! Now that that’s done… what else?”

“I don’t know, I think that’s good. We can always change it if we want, right?” Lucy said, looking back at her computer.

“You can’t just change the terms and conditions out of nowhere!” Natsu gasped, putting a hand over his heart.

“Uh, yes you can. Companies do that all the time, but I guess they leave notices before.” Gray added.

“Shut up, Gray.” Natsu snapped before grinning at Lucy. “Well, it’s okay. Since this is our first contract, we can change it as much as we need to. Now,” He held his pinkie out to Lucy. “We have to seal it with a pinky promise! You can’t break those.”

Lucy hesitated. The last time she made a pinky promise, it didn’t end very pleasant… she remembered her mother’s death, one of the very last times young Lucy saw her mother was when she’d first gotten sick. She’d asked Lucy to pinky promise her that she’d continue to grow while she was away and keep being her “Lucky Lucy”. Lucy didn’t think she was very lucky. “Sure?” She locked pinkies with Natsu.

“Hey, bestie, you don’t have any food. Aren’t you hungry?” Natsu frowned.

“I’d much prefer Luce to bestie.” Lucy muttered. “And no, I’m alright.”

As if on cue, her stomach growled and she could feel her face heat up.

“Uh-”

“Damn, I kinda ate all my food. Sorry,” Natsu grimaced, “That’s okay. Want me to buy you some?”

“No, no, that’s okay--”

“But your financial situation is bad right? So as your friend, you’ve gotta let me help!” Natsu frowned.

“We agreed on no prying.” Lucy said, voice stern as if she were a mother scolding her child.

“Yes, well…” Natsu sighed loudly. “Fine. I’m still hungry, so I’m gonna get more food.”

“Still?” Lucy’s face scrunched up.

“Natsu never stops eating.” Gray snickered. “Fatass.”

“Suck my--”

“Are we fighting?” Erza wiped frosting from her mouth with a napkin.

“Nope! Why would you think that?” Natsu and Gray started doing a handshake.

Lucy shook her head as Natsu left, smiling. Lisanna glanced at her before eating her lunch in silence.

Natsu returned with a caesar salad. “What? I have to be more healthy.” He popped it open before clutching his stomach. “Ow! Ouch, this hurts so bad! Damnit, I can’t eat another bite, but... whoever will eat this delicious salad that’s very good for you and has lots of nutrients! It even has croutons, woe is me!”

“Shit, I’ll take it--”

“Fuck off, Gray!” Pain act briefly thrown out the window, Natsu stuck out his middle finger. He doubled over again. “Lucy, will you finish my salad in my stead? I just hate wasting food and-- ouch!”

Lucy huffed and accepted the salad. “Thanks?”   
“No problem, Luce.” Natsu slid the ranch packet her way and grinned as he watched her eat. He’d have to figure out what she liked soon. With that, everyone resumed their mini conversations until the lunch period ended.

Something nagged at the back of Lisanna’s mind, could Lucy just be trying to get closer to Natsu? Anyone could see that she didn’t like him at first, but was that just an act? She shook off the thought. Lucy was a much better person than that. Right?

She hoped so.


End file.
